Tuition Remission

The Villanova University Tuition Remission Program is designed to provide employees and their eligible dependents tuition assistance for eligible courses taken at Villanova. Upon meeting eligibility, an employee is eligible to receive tuition remission toward their pursuit of an undergraduate or graduate degree.
Eligible dependents (spouse and biological, legally adopted or step children claimed as tax dependents under the age of 23) can pursue an undergraduate degree upon meeting eligibility. Please note that for dependents, there is a maximum of 175 attempted undergraduate credits, or the attainment of the baccalaureate degree, whichever comes first. A co-payment may apply depending on your date of hire with the University.

Eligible employees must apply for tuition remission on-line through Novasis every semester, as soon as their eligible dependent has registered for classes.

Courses that are excluded under the Tuition Remission Program

Some examples of excluded programs include:

Summer Business Institute

Engineering Entrepreneurship Summer Institute (E2SI)

Executive MBA

All Continuing Study Courses

Any courses offered that are not for credit

On-line courses offered through University Alliance/Bisk or Pearson/Embanet

Any and all Study Abroad Courses

Please contact the Bursar's office directly to determine if the program that you are enrolling in is covered under the University Tuition Remission Program.

Tuition Remission for Full-Time Faculty & Staff Members

For the staff member’s own attendance at Villanova University, tuition remission will be provided at the start of the semester or term following the completion of six (6) months of service. Staff members are limited to taking no more than six (6) graduate, or nine (9) undergraduate credits in a semester. Classes must be taken outside of normal working hours unless both the department head and the Associate Vice President of Human Resources approve an exception.

Tuition remission is available only for courses taken on the University's campus (or Villanova University sponsored distance learning courses taken for credit) and for which tuition charges are billed by the Bursar. Non-credit Continuing Studies courses, study abroad, and other credit work at locations away from the main campus are not covered by the tuition remission program.

Employees are responsible for paying the general fee, as well as any other fees associated with specific courses.

Tuition Remission for Spouses and Children of Full-Time Faculty & Staff Members

Eligibility

An employee’s spouse and biological, legally adopted or step children must be claimed as tax dependents in order to be eligible for tuition remission. The HR department reserves the right to ask for redacted copies of tax forms to confirm eligibility.
All students must meet normal admission requirements and filing deadlines. Tuition remission is available only for courses taken on the University's campus and for which tuition charges are billed by the Bursar. Non-credit Continuing Studies courses, study abroad, and other credit work at locations away from the main campus are not covered by the tuition remission program. Charges for the application fee, the general fee, the health and wellness fee, room & board, as well as other fees and costs associated with being a student at the University are not covered by the tuition remission program.

Benefit

For spouses and dependent children of employees who were employed by Villanova prior to August 30, 1999: Effective with the beginning of the next semester or summer session following the completion of three years of service, eligible spouses and dependent children are provided full tuition remission for courses taken at Villanova.

For spouses and dependent children of employees who were employed by Villanova on or after August 30, 1999: Effective with the beginning of the next semester or summer session following the completion of three years of service, eligible spouses and dependent children are provided tuition remission for courses taken at Villanova, subject to a co-payment. For information on remission rates, you can download the information from the Bursar website.

Other Eligibility Requirements

Tuition remission will not be extended beyond the fall semester of the calendar year in which a dependent child reaches age 23.

For spouses and dependent children, the maximum tuition remission benefit is 175 attempted undergraduate credits, or the attainment of the baccalaureate degree, whichever comes first. The 175 credit maximum includes any failed courses, withdrawals beyond the drop and add period, or other courses not counted toward the awarding of the degree.

For spouses and dependent children, no tuition remission will be extended for Graduate or Law School programs.

A child may receive tuition remission for part-time study, but in order to qualify for tuition remission as a part time student, the employee's child must still be claimed as an exemption on the parent's federal income tax return. In order to claim an exemption for a child who is age 19 or older, the child must not earn on his or her own more than the amount of that year's federal tax exemption amount. If a child is enrolled as a full time student, the earnings limitation does not apply. Thus a student who is taking classes only part-time must restrict his or her own earnings to the stated exemption amount.

Currently, tuition benefits for undergraduate programs for the employee, spouse, and eligible dependents are non-taxable. Tuition benefits for employees for graduate courses (up to a maximum value of $5,250 per year) are currently tax-free as well.

University retirees, their spouses and eligible dependent children as of the date of retirement continue to be eligible for tuition remission benefits upon the employee’s retirement from the University. In order to be an eligible retiree, you must have obtained age 55 with at least 10 years of service prior to retirement.

For any employee who has completed ten or more years of continuous service, and becomes disabled and is approved for coverage under the University’s long term disability program, the employee, the spouse and eligible dependent children will continue to be eligible for tuition remission.

In the case of the death of an employee who has completed ten years of continuous service, the surviving spouse who has not remarried and the dependent children will continue to be eligible for the tuition remission benefit on the same basis as if the employee were alive. In the case of the death of both the employee and spouse, the children will continue to be eligible for tuition remission.

Study abroad programs are excluded from tuition remission. However, student is responsible for the cost of the program, travel and all school fees. Contact Office of International Studies for further details.

If you move from a part time to a full time position, HR will calculate an adjusted date of hire that will be used for tuition, retirement eligibility and vacation entitlement. If you previously worked for Villanova and were rehired, previous service may be applied to retirement plan eligibility.

Courses that are excluded under the Tuition Remission Program

Some examples of excluded programs include:

Summer Business Institute

Executive MBA

All Continuing Study Courses

Any courses offered that are not for credit

On-line courses offered through University Alliance/Bisk or Pearson/Embanet

Any and all Study Abroad Courses

Please contact the Bursar's office directly to determine if the program that you are enrolling in is covered under the University Tuition Remission Program.

This benefit applies only to employees who are regularly scheduled to work 1,000 hours or more per year.

Part-time faculty, staff, spouses and dependent children are eligible for tuition remission according to the schedules provided below. The following terms and provisions (which are consistent with, and analogous to, those that govern tuition remission for full-time faculty and other full-time and part-time employees) apply.

Tuition Remission Schedule for Part-time Faculty & Staff hired before August 30, 1999, and serving continuously thereafter as described in the table below:

**For students entering Fall, 2003 or later, tuition remission will not apply toward graduate or Law school tuition.

Eligibility

Eligibility for tuition remission is based on the number of years of a part-time faculty or staff member’s continuous service at Villanova, as indicated on the above charts.

Part-time Faculty

A year of service for part-time faculty consists of a fall-spring-summer sequence during which the part-time faculty member teaches a total of six or more credit hours (graduate or undergraduate). Beginning in September, 1999, a one year break in the continuity of service will not be deemed an interruption of continuous service if the faculty member has taught at Villanova for a total of at least five full years (at six or more credits per year). A break in service of two years (either consecutive or non-consecutive) will not be deemed an interruption of service for those faculty who have taught at Villanova for ten or more years (at six or more credits per year). Once a faculty member achieves eligibility for tuition remission during any given academic year (fall, spring, summer), the indicated amount of remission may be applied during the following fall, spring, or summer; and it may continue to be applied as long as eligibility is maintained.

Part-time Staff

A year of service for part-time staff consists of a rolling calendar year forward from the employee’s date of hire in which the employee has worked at least 1000 hours.

Part-Time Faculty & Staff Eligibility and Restrictions

Subject

Part-Time Faculty (self)

Spouses and Dependents

Coverage of tuition/fees

Tuition only (according to schedule)

Tuition only (according to schedule)

Courses available for tuition remission

All undergraduate and graduate courses except courses in the School of Law

Maximum of 175 credit hours attempted. Beginning with the fall semester, 2003, no tuition remission will be available after the spouse or dependent has achieved a bachelor’s degree.

Age restrictions

None

Eligibility for dependent children entering Villanova extends only through the fall semester of the year prior to the 24th birthday. The University reserves the right to require proof of dependency status.

The dependent children of part-time faculty and staff who wish to apply for on-campus housing as a normal part of the admission to the University (as opposed to the semester-by-semester available housing described above) must forgo tuition remission. Such students may also apply for financial assistance through the normal procedure. If at some point, these dependents choose to live off-campus, they would then become eligible for tuition remission.

In cases of financial need, part-time employee dependents are eligible to apply for Villanova financial assistance through the normal procedures, and all are strongly encouraged to apply for external public and private grants and scholarships. Part-time employee dependents wishing to forego tuition remission in order to be eligible for residence living may also apply for financial assistance through the normal channels.

Other Eligibility Requirements

A child may receive tuition remission for part-time study, but in order to qualify for tuition remission as a part-time student, the employee's child must still be claimed as an exemption on the parent's federal income tax return. In order to claim an exemption for a child who is age 19 or older, the child must not earn on his or her own more than the amount of that year's federal tax exemption amount. If a child is enrolled as a full time student, the earnings limitation does not apply. Thus a student who is taking classes only part-time must restrict his or her own earnings to the stated exemption amount.

Currently, tuition benefits for undergraduate programs for the employee, spouse, and eligible dependents are non-taxable. Tuition benefits for employees for graduate courses (up to a maximum value of $5,250 per year) are currently tax-free as well.

University Retirees, their spouses and eligible dependent children continue to be eligible for tuition remission benefits upon the employee’s retirement from the University.

If you move from a part time to a full time position, HR will calculate an adjusted date of hire that will be used for tuition, retirement eligibility and vacation entitlement. If you previously worked for Villanova and were rehired, previous service may be applied to retirement plan eligibility.

Courses that are excluded under the Tuition Remission Program

Some examples of excluded programs include:

Summer Business Institute

Executive MBA

All Continuing Study Courses

Any courses offered that are not for credit

On-line courses offered through University Alliance/Bisk or Pearson/Embanet

Any and all Study Abroad Courses

Please contact the Bursar's office directly to determine if the program that you are enrolling in is covered under the University Tuition Remission Program.

About Villanova

Villanova University was founded in 1842 by the Order of St. Augustine. To this day, Villanova’s Augustinian Catholic intellectual tradition is the cornerstone of an academic community in which students learn to think critically, act compassionately and succeed while serving others. There are more than 10,000 undergraduate, graduate and law students in the University’s six colleges.